Behavioral Task Performance for Psychiatric Symptoms

(CABxtime Trial)

Not yet recruiting at 1 trial location

Overseen By John P O'Doherty, D.Phil

Age: 18+

Sex: Any

Trial Phase: Academic

Sponsor: California Institute of Technology

Disqualifiers: Neurological disease, Psychotic disorders, Substance use, others

No Placebo Group All trial participants will receive the active study treatment (no placebo)

Compensation: Varies

Number of Visits: 1

What You Need to Know Before You Apply

What is the purpose of this trial?

This trial explores how people perform certain tasks and how this relates to psychiatric symptoms over time. The researchers aim to understand the link between task performance and conditions such as depression, anxiety, or obsessive-compulsive disorder. Participants include individuals with these conditions and healthy individuals. Ideal candidates have a psychiatric diagnosis like depression or anxiety, can communicate well, and have no history of neurological diseases. As an unphased trial, this study offers participants the chance to contribute to groundbreaking research that could enhance understanding and treatment of psychiatric conditions.

Will I have to stop taking my current medications?

The trial information does not specify whether you need to stop taking your current medications. It is best to discuss this with the trial coordinators or your doctor.

What prior data suggests that this behavioral task performance is safe?

Research shows that behavioral tasks as a treatment are generally safe for participants. Studies have not identified any serious side effects from these tasks. Being non-invasive, they do not physically affect the body like medicines or surgeries. As this is not a drug treatment, the risks are much lower compared to traditional medical treatments. Participants typically engage in tasks on a computer or through other simple, safe activities. Overall, evidence suggests that participants handle these tasks well, with no major safety concerns reported. ^{1 2 3 4 5}

Why are researchers excited about this trial?

Researchers are excited about the Behavioral Task Performance approach for psychiatric symptoms because it offers a non-pharmacological way to improve mental health. Unlike traditional treatments that often involve medications like antidepressants or antipsychotics, this method focuses on engaging patients in specific tasks designed to enhance cognitive and emotional functioning. This approach has the potential to reduce side effects commonly associated with medication, while also empowering patients to take an active role in their own treatment through behavioral engagement. By targeting the brain's natural ability to adapt and improve through practice, this technique could offer a complementary or alternative option for those seeking different ways to manage their symptoms.

What evidence suggests that this behavioral task performance is effective for psychiatric symptoms?

Research shows that mental health symptoms can influence decision-making, particularly in seeking rewards or avoiding losses. One study found that changes in brain activity relate to the severity of depression and social anxiety. Another study discovered that certain tasks can predict changes in mental health symptoms over time, suggesting these tasks might help in understanding and monitoring mental health issues. In this trial, participants will engage in a behavioral task battery to assess its impact on psychiatric symptoms. Specifically, a task called behavioral activation has improved symptoms like depression. Overall, these findings support using these tasks to study and potentially manage mental health symptoms. ^{2 6 7 8 9}

Who Is on the Research Team?

John P O'Doherty, D.Phil

Principal Investigator

California Institute of Technology

Are You a Good Fit for This Trial?

This trial is for adults aged 18-65. It includes healthy individuals without psychiatric diagnoses and patients with depression, anxiety disorders, or OCD. Participants must be able to understand and perform tasks and give informed consent. Exclusions are neurological diseases, psychotic disorders, or active substance use disorder.

Inclusion Criteria

Comorbidity with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) and attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) are allowed

Ability to give informed consent

Ability to give informed consent

Exclusion Criteria

For healthy control participants:

Currently active substance use disorder

I am a patient seeking treatment.

Timeline for a Trial Participant

Screening

Participants are screened for eligibility to participate in the trial

2-4 weeks

Baseline Assessment

Initial computational assessment task battery to measure individual differences in computational processes

1-2 weeks

1 visit (virtual)

Longitudinal Assessment

Repeated assessments using computational task battery to track changes in computational parameter estimates and psychiatric symptoms

12 months

Multiple visits (virtual)

Follow-up

Participants are monitored for changes in psychiatric symptoms and computational parameter estimates

4 weeks

What Are the Treatments Tested in This Trial?

Interventions

• Behavioral Task Performance

Trial Overview The study examines how well computational analysis of task performance can predict psychiatric symptoms over a year. It involves both healthy people and those with certain mental health conditions from online platforms and UCLA clinics.

How Is the Trial Designed?

Group I: Behavioral task battery Experimental Treatment 1 Intervention

Who Is Running the Clinical Trial?

California Institute of Technology

Lead Sponsor

Trials

17

Recruited

4,300+

Citations

1. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10090330/

Association between mental health symptoms and ... This study identified high mental health burden, particularly in younger online workers, and associated negative impacts on cognitive function.

2. clinicaltrials.gov clinicaltrials.gov/ct2/show/NCT06705179

Can Computational Measures of Task Performance Predict ... Can Computational Measures of Task Performance Predict Psychiatric Symptoms and Changes in Symptom Severity Across Time (CABxtime).

3. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC10841166/

Behavioral and psychiatric correlates of brain responses to ... We also examined the relationship between these brain responses and depression and social anxiety severity. The sample consisted of 113 16–21-year-olds ...

4. bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com bmcpsychiatry.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12888-024-05973-z

Comparing the effectiveness of behavioral activation in group ... The results of a Mixed ANOVA analysis revealed that participants who underwent BAGT showed significant improvement in depression, rumination, ...

5. onlinelibrary.wiley.com onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/pcn.13279

Psychiatric symptoms influence reward‐seeking and loss‐ ... These findings suggest that psychiatric symptoms influence the two types of decision-making, reward-seeking and loss-avoidance, through both common and ...

6. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC8871834/

The Association between Mental Health Symptoms and ... This study examines the impact of various mental health symptoms experienced by nurses on quality and safety before and during the COVID-19 pandemic.

7. pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9359776/

Patient Safety Strategies in Psychiatry and How They ... The aims of this scoping review are to explore patient safety strategies used in psychiatry and determine how they construct the notion of preventable harm.

8. sciencedirect.com sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0925753522002879

Psychosocial factors and safety in high-risk industries Results indicate that there is preliminary evidence of a link between the exposure to workplace psychosocial factors and safety in high-risk industries.

9. icheme.org icheme.org/media/9832/xix-paper-45.pdf

Identifying the impact of psychological ill-health on safety ... This paper describes a project initiated by BP to gain a deeper understanding of how safety performance is affected when personnel experience psychological ...